Thom swore, throwing himself from the saddle, blinking furiously as if that would help his sudden lack of sight.<\/p>\n
Still alive. That\u2019s something.<\/em><\/p>\n Hands grabbed him roughly and he reacted by instinct, elbow driving back into the face of someone at his shoulder. An unfamiliar voice cried out and Thom was free, stumbling forward as his would-be captor stumbled back.<\/p>\n \u201cFreeze or your friend dies,\u201d another voice growled.<\/p>\n Thom\u2019s mind raced, but he froze. It didn\u2019t matter which one of them had a knife his throat or a gun to his head. He couldn\u2019t take the risk.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not here to hurt you,\u201d Thom said carefully.<\/p>\n \u201cMy nose would beg to differ,\u201d a deep voice said from behind him, muffled and pained. \u201cI think you broke it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSet him loose,\u201d Cameron growled from somewhere to Thom\u2019s right. \u201cWe came to talk, maybe trade, not to pick a fight.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cForgive us if we\u2019re not entirely trusting of your intentions,\u201d a woman\u2019s voice said, silk-smooth but husky. The sound sent a strange feeling fluttering through Thom\u2019s belly, an inexplicable shiver skittering down his spine. It wasn\u2019t fear or desire\u2014it was something else entirely, something he couldn\u2019t put a name to, though he tried.<\/p>\n \u201cThe last bunch who showed up at our front door tried to burn us out, killed or hurt half of the people who were here.\u201d Her voice was young, he realized, the voice of a woman of no more than thirty\u2014somehow, instinctively, he knew that without being able to see her face.<\/p>\n He blinked again, eyes tearing, vision not clearing\u2014but he could tell that it would be back soon enough, that whatever these strangers had done hadn\u2019t rendered him sightless permanently.<\/p>\n Thank goodness for small favors.<\/em><\/p>\n He took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly.<\/p>\n \u201cMy name is Thom,\u201d he said quietly. \u201cAnd we came to be your friends. If you don\u2019t want our friendship, though, we\u2019re more than willing to fight. I warn you, though\u2014when we fight? We don\u2019t lose.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Thom swore, throwing himself from the saddle, blinking furiously as if that would help his sudden lack of sight. Still alive. That\u2019s something. Hands grabbed him roughly and he reacted by instinct, elbow driving back into the face of someone … Continue reading